The Board of Supervisors paid tribute to the legendary jazz musician Ernie Andrews, who will be turning 90 on Christmas Day, 2017. Supervisor Mark Ridley-Thomas presented him with a scroll and a birthday cake, and also led the crowd in singing Happy Birthday.

“Our local legend is in the house,” Supervisor Ridley-Thomas said. “Join me in celebrating the one and only Ernie Andrews on his remarkable jazz career and his upcoming 90th birthday.”

“I appreciate the recognition,” Andrews said. “I’ve been doing nothing but singing for a living – over 72 years now. That’s all I’ve ever done and I’ve had a nice journey.”

All photos by Henry Salazar / Board of Supervisors.

“I have enjoyed the ride and I’m still enjoying the ride,” he added. “Thank you.”

Born in 1927, Andrews spent his early years in Philadelphia and Louisiana. After moving to Los Angeles in 1944, he soon made a name for himself as a bright young talent in the local jazz scene.

Songwriter Joe Greene heard him performing on Central Avenue and quickly signed him, eventually writing his biggest hit, “Soothe Me.”

Andrews joined the Harry James Orchestra in 1958, and adopted a lush pop-oriented orchestral sound. From the 70’s through the 90’s, he collaborated with many stellar musicians, including the Frank Capp-Nat Piece Orchestra, the Clayton-Hamilton Orchestra and the Los Angeles Symphony Camerata. He also performed in such iconic events as the Lionel Hampton Jazz Festival and the Playboy Jazz Festival.

In 1986, his remarkable career was documented in the film “Blues for Central Avenue.”

For the first time ever, the LA Opera presented a live Opera at the Park simulcast at Exposition Park sponsored by Los Angeles County and Board of Supervisors Chairman Mark Ridley-Thomas. The performance of CARMEN starring Ana Maria Martinez and conducted by James Conlon, was broadcast live in high-definition from the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion to the big screen at Exposition Park for over a thousand community members.

“I am pleased to bring to the Second Supervisorial District a world-class opera performance in the perfect Southern California outdoor setting for families to enjoy,” said Chairman Ridley-Thomas while introducing the simulcast. “Expo Park is where arts, sports, science, history and education all come together, so tonight, the LA Opera is right at home.”

The event began as the sun was setting with pre-show entertainment by student musicians and choir members from Manual Arts High School.

The Lucas Museum of Narrative Art will be a one-of-a-kind gathering place to experience art and exhibitions dedicated to the power of storytelling across all media, including paintings, illustrations and moving images. The Lucas family will fully fund the Museum’s construction, collection, and operating endowment with no cost to taxpayers to build the Museum.

“Through participation in the arts, people are brought together; we realize that we all have a story to tell, and that we can learn from one another, especially in these troubling times,” the Chairman said.

Legendary Los Angeles-based photographer Nick Ut, who won a Pulitzer Prize for his 1972 photo that became an iconic image of the Vietnam War, is retiring after a 51 year career with the Associated Press.

Photo by David Franco/Board of Supervisors

“Nick Ut, through his hauntingly beautiful photography, has chronicled history and captivated the world’s attention, leaving a legacy for future generations,” said Los Angeles County Supervisor and Board Chairman Mark Ridley-Thomas, who recognized Ut proclaiming April 4, 2017 as Nick Ut Day in the County of Los Angeles.

Born in Vietnam in 1951, Ut was 15 when his brother and war photographer, Huynh Thanh My, was killed at war in 1965. Promising to himself that he would continue his brother’s mission of taking a photo that would end the war, Ut showed up at the AP’s Saigon bureau, seeking a job.

He was only 21 when he took the famed photo of a naked 9-year-old girl fleeing her village after a napalm attack on June 8, 1972. At 12:30 p.m. that day, four napalm bombs were dropped on Trang Bang. Nick watched in horror as people emerged from the fireball and smoke. He photographed a grandmother carrying a baby who died in her arms. He then photographed nine-year-old Kim Phuc whose clothes had been burned off her and whose skin was beginning to melt off of her body in strips. Badly in need of immediate medical attention, Kim had third-degree burns on more than 30 percent of her body. Nick set his camera aside, covered her with a raincoat and drove Kim and other injured children to a hospital in nearby Cu Chi. After the hospital refused to admit her, Ut used his media credentials to get her treated by doctors who ultimately saved her life.

“I cried when I saw her running,” Ut once told an AP reporter. “If I don’t help her — if something happened and she died — I think I’d kill myself after that.” Ut is still close with the now 53-year-old Kim Phúc who is a wife and mother of two.

South Vietnamese forces follow after terrified children, including 9-year-old Kim Phuc, center, as they run down Route 1 near Trang Bang after an aerial napalm attack on suspected Viet Cong hiding places, June 8, 1972. A South Vietnamese plane accidentally dropped its flaming napalm on South Vietnamese troops and civilians. The terrified girl had ripped off her burning clothes while fleeing. The children from left to right are: Phan Thanh Tam, younger brother of Kim Phuc, who lost an eye, Phan Thanh Phouc, youngest brother of Kim Phuc, Kim Phuc, and Kim’s cousins Ho Van Bon, and Ho Thi Ting. Behind them are soldiers of the Vietnam Army 25th Division. (AP Photo/Nick Ut)

Nick Ut was awarded the Pulitzer Prize in 1973 for his photograph of Kim, which is credited with swaying public opinion against the war in Vietnam.

Los Angeles police form a line to prevent a crowd from going into a building, April 30, 1992, in a day of fires and looting. It was a long day as officers moved from trouble spot to trouble spot. (AP Photo/Nick Ut)

Ut would go on to take tens of thousands of photos over the next 44 years. After the fall of Saigon in 1975, Ut came to California as a refugee. AP sent him to Tokyo, and then to Los Angeles in 1977. He became a fixture in Los Angeles, where his images from the 1992 civil unrest, the O.J. Simpson trial, and the recent brush fires became an international lens to tell the story of current events in Los Angeles County.

During his retirement, he plans to spend time with his family, especially his grandchildren, teaching photography, and, yes, taking more pictures. “I’ll take pictures until I die,” says Ut. “My camera is like my doctor, my medicine.”

Board of Supervisors Chairman Mark Ridley-Thomas joined the Natural History Museum in launching its first virtual reality adventure – theBlu: An Underwater Virtual Reality Experience.

With a high-tech VR headset, visitors can explore the ocean without ever getting wet. In this six-minute immersive experience, they can wander around a sunken ship as manta rays and a blue whale swim past. Next, they can interact with colorful anemones at the edge of a coral reef while turtles and swarms of jellyfish glide by. The journey ends with a deep dive into an iridescent abyss, where hidden creatures such as angler fish appear with the use of a virtual flashlight.

Photo by Bryan Chan/Board of Supervisors

“The Museum’s mission is to study and teach the relationship between the whole spectrum of the human species and the natural world, and this experience does that and more,” Board Chair Ridley-Thomas said. “Using virtual reality technology in this exhibit makes this learning experience an immersive and interactive one. It makes learning fun.”

“Engaging and inspiring visitors is what we do – and theBlu is beautiful, powerful storytelling,” said the Museum’s director and president, Dr. Lori Bettison-Varga. “It would not surprise me if the next generation of marine biologists and VR developers are inspired by this exhibit.

“Here’s what it’s like, from someone who has done a lot of SCUBA diving: it’s cool to see all those plants and animals and not be underwater and cold – especially the deep sea chapter, where you couldn’t even dive in real life,” added Dr. Chris Thacker, the Museum’s fish curator. “It’s incredible to see all the animals up close, particularly the whale and the turtle, and interact with jellyfish and see how they respond.”

“The experience is scientifically accurate and does a good job of replicating what it’s like underwater, but you’re just standing there, warm and dry,” he added.

The virtual reality studio Wevr created theBlu in consultation with scientists from the museum and film director Jake Rowell (Call of Duty, Final Fantasy). It was among the New Frontiers Selection at the 2016 Sundance Film Festival.

theBlu will be on exhibit from March 6-April 28. Tickets can be purchased the Museum’s website, NHM.org, at a cost of $8 for members and $10 for non-members. Children must be at least 10 years old to participate, due to safety reasons and ability to follow instructions. Guests under the age of 18 must be accompanied by an adult.

The Willowbrook community came out in droves to join Supervisor Mark Ridley-Thomas in celebrating the grand reopening of A.C. Bilbrew Library after a $5-million renovation.

Located at 150 East El Segundo Boulevard, the library underwent a complete makeover. It now has twice as much seating capacity as before, with newly installed state-of-the-art technology – including laptops that can be borrowed from a vending machine – and recently acquired artwork that have transformed the 1970’s-era structure into a cultural center.

“This is not just your everyday library,” Supervisor Ridley-Thomas said during the ceremony, which also commemorated African American History Month. “A.C. Bilbrew Library is more than a simple repository of books. It is a gathering place for the community and a safe haven for children and families, where knowledge, art, culture and technology are all within reach.”

“A.C. Bilbrew Library has long been a community asset. However, the old library had outgrown the needs of the community and required a major renovation,” Library Director Skye Patrick said. “Supervisor Mark Ridley-Thomas recognized these needs and championed to modernize this library.”

Aside from the transformed library, the community is also getting a completely renovated senior center, located just down the street and operated by Los Angeles County Department of Workforce Development, Aging and Community Services.

The 21,843 sq. ft. library, named after a community leader, poet, musician, and radio pioneer, has been updated with seating for nearly 200 people, providing additional space for reading and studying. There are also 18 adult desktop computers, three teen computers, four homework center desktop computers, two early-learning desktop computers and a laptop vending machine with a dozen laptops that can be checked out for use within the library.

There are three self check-out machines, and study tables with USB charging capabilities. In addition, the library features an updated community meeting room with a kitchenette and state-of-the-art audio visual system. There are two group study rooms with audio/visual capabilities and a whiteboard wall, a children’s activity room, and separate areas for teens and younger children.

Throughout the library are 50 paintings and sculptures recently acquired from the Golden State Mutual Arts Collection. The interior courtyard has a civic art piece developed by artist team Greenmeme, who incorporated native plantings and a trellis, as well as seating, to create an outdoor garden and a gathering space for the community.

The AC Bilbrew Library is the home for the African American Resource Center, which carries many precious archives and holds an important role in the preservation of African American culture and history. Some of the materials have long been out of print and are the only remaining copies available in the world. “Improvement has been made to the way the archives are stored so that these resources are preserved for many generations to come,” said Supervisor Ridley-Thomas.

Built with sustainability in mind, the library is equipped with energy-efficient LED lighting, air conditioning and heating, drought-tolerant landscaping and other water-efficient features, making it the County’s second “net zero” energy facility.